Governance

What is good governance? How well can a person or a community access help or push for a needed change? How often are they heard? Village Square shines a light on the people and schemes making the biggest impact or providing the most unique solutions.

her life

Gram swaraj in a globalizing world

Mahatma Gandhi’s vision of economically self-sufficient villages is at a distinct variance with the ideas and policies of liberalization, trade and globalization. Is it possible to strike a middle path?

her life

Soligas in tiger reserve win battle over forest rights

After the jungles they inhabit were declared a wildlife sanctuary, the Soliga tribe in southern Karnataka has made history by winning a legal battle over their traditional rights to forestland and produce

her life

Bhimshankar village makes the most of nature’s trail

Residents of Yelavali village inside Bhimashankar Wildlife Sanctuary in Maharashtra have made a collective decision to promote responsible ecotourism that is providing them with a sustainable livelihood

her life

Rural community at receiving end of temple town’s sewage

Commercial establishments catering to religious tourism in the temple town of Guruvayur have contaminated the ground and surface water of a village in Thrissur by releasing raw sewage into natural drains

her life

Women farmers suffer due to unequal land rights

Although they are often the actual cultivators, the lack of land rights among women farmers in Odisha has resulted in chronic distress because they are unable to get government loans or compensation over crop loss

her life

Assam village become trailblazers in adaptive agriculture

From seed banks to rainwater harvesting, one village on the banks of the Brahmaputra River has spread innovative agriculture through the region, as farmers battle against worsening floods and droughts

her life

India’s traditional wisdom in coping with extreme weather

In large parts of the subcontinent where floods or droughts are annual or recurring events, people in rural areas have evolved location-specific strategies to deal with the disasters and unusual weather

her life

Kerala moves swiftly to treat Attapady’s tribes

The lynching of a mentally ill tribal youth has spurred Kerala to create jobs for tribes living in the progressive state, besides surveying them to identify the mentally ill, treat them and rehabilitate them

her life

Munda tribes of Jharkhand desire inclusive development

Once self-sufficient, the Munda farming community in Jharkhand has accepted changes in governance that promises social and economic development. But, inclusive development has eluded them